CHICAGO (Ticker) -- Al
Smith, a two-time All-Star whose home run helped clinch the 1959 American
League pennant for the Chicago White Sox, died Thursday after a brief
illness. He was 73.

Smith spent five seasons with the White
Sox during a 12-year major league career. Acquired with Hall of Famer
Early Wynn from Cleveland in December 1957 for Fred Hatfield and Minnie
Minoso, he homered against the Indians on September 22, 1959 to help the
White Sox capture their first pennant in 40 years.

Chicago lost the World Series in six
games to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but Smith provided one of the lasting
images. In Game Two at Comiskey Park, he chased a home run off the bat of
Charley Neal and was doused by a beer from a fan in the front row of the
left field grandstand.

Smith hit a career-best .315 for
Chicago in 1960 and followed that a year later by posting career highs
with 28 home runs and 93 RBI. An outfielder and third baseman, he appeared
in the All-Star Game in 1955 and 1960 and was a career .272 hitter with
164 home runs and 676 RBI in 1,517 games.

Smith also played for Baltimore and
Boston before retiring following the 1964 season. He went on to work for
the Chicago Park District and was a part-time community relations
representative for the White Sox.

Smith is survived by his wife, Mildred,
four children and 11 grandchildren. Funeral arrangements were
pending.